Boating is a pastime enjoyed every day by many people across the world. Whether boating to fish, travel or the mere enjoyment of operating a boat, a situation appropriate watercraft is a necessary component for any such activity.
As most people who enjoy boats know, boats and boat hulls come in many different shapes and sizes, with a particular shape and size often being dictated by the type of activity intended. For example, a planing boat is design to rise upon the top of the water as the boat gains speed and may often be used to tow water-skiers while a flat bottom boat is often considered ideal for fishing in calm and shallow waters.
These are but a few of the types of boat hulls available and while each has the aforementioned advantages, they also have disadvantages. Whereas a planning boat hull might be more stable in rough waters at high speeds they are not likely to be of great use in shallow water while the flat bottom boat or tunnel boat is great for navigating in shallow water but is not as stable and therefore ill-suited for rough and choppy water. Therefore, an ideal boat hull would be one which combines the stability of a planing boat with the ability to navigate in shallow waters of a flat bottom boat into one (1) watercraft.
Some efforts to address this issue have been made in the form of U.S. Pat. Nos. 8,783,200, 3,559,222 and U.S. Pat. App. Pub. No. 2010/0024707. However, these solutions are not satisfactory. As such, there is a need for a draft adjustable watercraft that selectively permits an operator to modify the hull from a planing or deep “V” configuration to a flat bottom or tunnel hull as needed. The present invention fulfills this need.
To achieve the above and other objectives, the present invention provides for such a watercraft which comprises a hull having an exterior hull channel within a hull bottom and adjacent a watercraft stern, an adjustable hull adjustably secured within the hull channel in mechanical communication with a hull adjustment assembly and a control in electrical communication with the hull adjustment assembly and a power source. The control permits a user to selectively raise or lower the adjustable hull within the hull channel.
The hull adjustment assembly may comprise a hydraulic assembly which in turn may comprise a hydraulic cylinder secured at a first end to an exterior surface of the hull channel and a hydraulic piston in mechanical communication with the hydraulic cylinder and the piston being secured to the adjustable hull at a hydraulic piston first end.
The piston first end may be secured to a pivot point first end while a pivot point second end is secured to the adjustable hull. The control may comprise a first switch. The control may further comprise a second switch. The first switch may raise the adjustable hull. The second switch may lower the adjustable hull. The hull channel and adjustable hull may each comprise a polygonal cuboid shape.
In a separate embodiment, the hydraulic lifting system is replaced with a manually operated arm which is secured to a handle at a first end and secured to the adjustable hull at a second end. A user may pull the adjustable hull up or push the adjustable hull down. The manually operated arm may come with a locking device capable of securing the same into position.